Never Say Goodbye
by Kiena-Of-Terrasen
Summary: Nehemia knew she was going to die. What were her thoughts in her last moments? What were her fears for her people, for Eyllwe? Did she know Celaena's true identity as the heir of Terrasen, and how did she feel for her friend. This Nehemia's story of her final moments. One-shot. Set during Crown of Midnight. (SPOILERS FOR CROWN OF MIDNIGHT)


**Never Say Goodbye**

A fool. A coward. How could she turn her back on her people, _my_ people? All those innocent people, cut down like wheat at the butchering blocks. And Celaena had just turned her head away, not caring about all those lives lost.

Clothed in my satin gold nightgown, I agitatedly paced back and forth in front of the crackling fireplace. The embers hissed as my nightgown swished past them, my anger rising. The gold material fitted my body perfectly, making my dark, flawless skin stick out nicely. My feet worked furiously as they paced back and forth across the carpet.

 _Think, think, think!_ I screamed silently as I rubbed my temples with my fine fingertips. How? How could I get my friend to see the truth? To see that the King was a monster, a killing machine. She knew as well as I did that he had murdered millions of innocents, and yet she had done nothing about it. She had shrugged her shoulders and said "Oh well." And then she had stormed out, not thinking twice about what had truly mattered about that conversation.

I had watched her go, knowing that it would be the last time I would see her. And Celaena, my dearest friend, didn't think twice about the way I had spoken, trying to make amends and discuss the situation straight forward. She had hissed, sighed and stormed out. My dear friend, if I could save you from the coming pain; I would.

Celaena Sardothien, the World's Most Notorious Assassin, and one of my closest and trusted friend. She and I had met only a few months ago, when I was invited by the King to discuss Eyllwe at his castle in the capitol, Rifthold. When I had met Celaena, I had only imagined her as a courtesan, not a highly-trained assassin. She had spoken to me in Eyllwe, my native language, and had agreed to teach me the commonly-used language to help me around the castle.

I had seen the potential in her, the burning fire inside her. I knew that she had a very important role to play when the time would come to defeat the King of Adarlan. She had kept secrets from me, I was not stupid, and it hurt me that she did not trust me enough to tell me. Although, I had kept secrets from her too, and it killed me to. But it was for the best, if she was safe away from a world of darkness, the other realms and the Wyrdkeys.

The clock chimed ten o'clock. Its war-cry shook the walls, rumbling the floor I stood on. I stopped pacing and breathed, my face strained with pain. Sometimes, it was too hard to handle; being a princess. The meetings, the dinners, the balls, everything was so stressful. And having to bear the weight of my country and people didn't help it, especially when most of the Eyllwe population was enslaved, or serving time in Calaculla or Endovier, the two largest labour camps ever to exist.

 _That,_ was why I was here. To shut down Calaculla, to end my people's suffering. Every day, I feared for the lives of my people, wondering if they were able to sleep at night not knowing the dangers that would be faced the next day. I shed tears every night thinking about all those people, _children_ , suffering because of their origin. And with the heat from the summer sun in Eyllwe bearing down on the slaves, the death toll had risen from petty little things such as dehydration and hunger.

My eyes watered at the thought of my people in such conditions. My heart ached for them, as much as it ached for Celaena, who had survived a year in Endovier. A _year_ , in the worst of the two labour camps, Endovier, located near the capitol. The life expectancy in Endovier was one month. Celaena had survived _twelve_ , and she had to bear the scars for the rest of her life because of it.

I could tell my friend was hurting. For a life she could have had that she lost, the same day that Terrasen had fallen to the evil clutches of Adarlan and its tyrant of a King. Who knew, maybe she, along with other thousands people, would have been saved from their fate in those camps. Magic had disappeared on that fateful day too, along with a mighty kingdom ruled by the descendants of Brannon himself. King Rhoe, Queen Evalin, and Princess Aelin, the three royal subjects to the throne, lost in an uneven battle between dark and light.

I stifled a cry, biting my lip as the tears fell. It wasn't fair.

The King had the demons of the other realm that had helped him defeat Terrasen. A cheat into winning the ultimate prize, supremacy of everlasting rule. Eyllwe had fallen too, but my country had not been destroyed as Terrasen had. My father, the King, still governs over what rubble is left of our country, but the King of Adarlan rules over him. My father had lost his throne to a tyrant, and he had been forced to bow down to him.

A polite knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. I stood in stunned silence for a brief moment, before I remembered who it was. The king requested my attendance at a meeting about Calaculla, and had arranged for an escort. I straightened my hair, wiped my cheeks of the tears and stood up straight. I held my head high as I spoke.

"Come in." my voice sounded strained, but I kept my face calm. The door clicked as the handle turned, and in walked a man. I did not recognise him as first, his hooded cloak concealing his facial features. My heart dropped as I realised her was not a palace escort. The man bore ragged, dirty clothes and a sword strapped to his belt; along with ten other daggers. He stood in the doorway with feral pride, holding the shapes of two people in each cloved hand.

The stranger walked in, shutting the door with his behind him, his hidden eyes pinned on me. He tossed the bodies of the two men he held at my feet, like the deadweight were nothing. The bodies fell with a _thunk_ , and I recognised their faces. My two bodyguards; their throats ripped from ear to ear. I looked up and looked at the man, as he threw back his hood and revealed his face.

He grinned a dirty smile that sent shivers down my spine.

"Remember me, Your Highness?"

Grave, the contestant that Celaena had beaten in the second duel in the King's contest. The final duel had taken place months ago, when the King had been seeking a champion to exterminate his enemies. Grave had lost, and had been taken back to his prison where he was to remain. And yet, he was here, standing in between my only escape route.

I swallowed my fear and meet his chilling eyes defiantly.

"What are you doing here Grave? You're supposed to be in prison." I begged my voice to remain steady, but it slightly wobbled. Grave smiled devilishly and took a casual step forward.

"You see there, Your Highness, I have some unfinished business with your friend…" his scratchy voice trailed off, and I knew what he meant. To hurt Celaena, he was going to kill me. For losing a fair battle to Celaena, Grave was going to take his revenge.

I couldn't avoid what was coming for me. Elena had warned me of my fate last two days ago, in my dreams. She had comforted me while I had cried, she had told me that she would be waiting on the other side. I believed her, and I still do.

I gulped heavily, glancing down at Grave's sword. It dripped with the blood of my slain bodyguards.

And soon, my blood too.

"I know what you're doing Grave, the harm you're trying to inflict on Celaena. But hear me out." I said to my assailant. Grave didn't move, only grinned wider as he tossed with his dagger. I inhaled, calming myself.

"You can kill me Grave, I know you will. But it will only enrage Celaena. She'll come for you, she'll kill you, and I don't think you want that outcome." If Grave was hearing my words, he didn't acknowledge what I was saying.

I blinked at his expressionless face. A slow grin crept up onto his face. He held the dagger still.

Grave spoke, his voice low. Deadly.

"Oh, of course, Your Highness. I know the outcome of your death, and like you, I don't care if I die. I have nothing to live for. But if I'm going to go down…" His voice trailed off, and I braced myself.

"I'm going to take you with me."

He lunged. Grabbed me. I didn't resist.

And he

Plunged the

knife

in

my

heart

and

it

was

over


End file.
